


Christmas Spirit

by meori_apeudaa



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Boys Kissing, Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Fluff, Idols, M/M, One Shot, minsang, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:00:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28327194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meori_apeudaa/pseuds/meori_apeudaa
Summary: “Sangie’s always been like this,” Wooyoung said sadly, adding a sigh to the end of his statement for dramatic effect. “There’s just something he doesn’t understand about being in the Christmas spirit.”Yeosang isn't big on Christmas, much to everyone's dismay, but there just might be one person who can change that for him.
Relationships: Kang Yeosang/Song Mingi
Comments: 2
Kudos: 56





	Christmas Spirit

**Author's Note:**

> this is my first time writing out a quick little one shot like this. let me know if you like it! any kudos/comments would be much appreciated :)
> 
> if you want to scream with me about ateez and/or check out an ongoing minsang au come find me on twitter @ME0RIAPEUDA
> 
> hope you enjoy!

Yeosang didn’t particularly care about Christmas, he had to admit, and everyone thought he was crazy for it. San in particular had let out a cry of disbelief when he had admitted this sentiment, to which Wooyoung patted his shoulder reassuringly. 

“Sangie’s always been like this,” Wooyoung said sadly, adding a sigh to the end of his statement for dramatic effect. “There’s just something he doesn’t understand about being in the Christmas spirit.”

Yeosang had rolled his eyes at his best friend in response but otherwise said nothing, giving a mere shrug as his answer. It was true. It wasn’t that he hated Christmas - he wasn’t a scrooge - and honestly, he did enjoy finding gifts for his friends, but he could do without the Christmas spirit.

“I think this means we have to have Christmas at Yeosang’s place,” Mingi had said earnestly, either completely missing or completely ignoring the glare that Yeosang sent his way. 

Wooyoung, Yeosang knew, chose to completely ignore it, clapping excitedly. “Yeosang has never held Christmas at his place,” he said, throwing his best friend a glare as he did so. “I think that needs to change. All in favor of Mingi’s plan?”

A chorus of aye’s rang around the table and Yeosang knew then that he was screwed. It was easy enough to turn down Wooyoung but significantly harder to turn down Mingi, and now that they had gotten their entire friend group on board there was no way he could tell them all no. 

“You’re all insufferable,” Yeosang grumbled. 

“You’ll have Mingi in your apartment, you should be thanking me,” Wooyoung had whispered to him with a grin as they all got up to leave the cafe. Yeosang had elbowed him in response but got nothing other than a laugh out of his best friend.

This was how Yeosang found himself on Christmas day with seven of his friends in his very small apartment, all yelling over each other about how to best decorate the place. Yeosang had thought he had done a good job all on his own, thank you very much - he had a Christmas tree in the corner, he had strewn some Christmas lights around his window, and he had even managed to get his fireplace working. 

He shouldn’t have been surprised when he opened his front door and found Wooyoung and San struggling to carry a giant box of decorations. “Sangie, move out of the way,” Wooyoung wheezed, pushing past the older boy into his apartment. He and San let the box fall to the ground with a loud thud and Yeosang cringed, certain that his downstairs neighbors would not be pleased. 

“You didn’t have to bring all of this,” Yeosang said, eyeing the box wearily. A wreath had fallen to the floor when the two dropped the box and it was piled high with god knows what.

“We did,” San insisted before Wooyoung could get a word in. “Your place is devoid of Christmas cheer.”

“Not entirely,” Wooyoung said quickly, trying to spare his best friend when he noticed the corners of Yeosang’s lips curve down. “You did really good with what you had! We’re just here to add more.”

“You brought decorations too?” Yunho practically shouted, running into the apartment and leaving Mingi to carry the bag full of decorations that the two had dragged from the apartment they shared. Yeosang was sure he didn’t want to know what horrors were inside that bag.

“Why did none of you trust me to decorate my own home?” Yeosang asked.

“We trusted you, Yeosang,” Mingi said with a smile as he walked in, gently setting down the bag. “We just thought you might need some more decorations is all.”

Yeosang tried to hold his glare but it was practically impossible to stay mad at Mingi when he looked like that. His brown eyes were wide in apology and his lower lip jutted out in a pout. Yeosang's heart flipped a bit in his chest and he quickly looked away, rolling his eyes to try to cover up how flustered the younger boy made him. When Mingi pouted like that, well, Yeosang just didn’t stand a chance. “Maybe it could use some more,” he conceded in a grumble, earning a bright smile from the younger and laughter from the rest of the group. “Does anyone know when the other three are getting here?”

“They’re on their way,” Yunho answered cheerfully. “Jongho picked up the other two so they should be here soon.” Jongho was the youngest among them yet he was the only one who had a car - it didn’t feel fair. Yunho had already picked the wreath up off the floor and was currently trying to find a way to hang it up on the apartment door. “Um...did anyone think to bring something to hang up the decorations with?”

“One step ahead of you,” Mingi responded, pulling a 3M hook out of his coat pocket and tossing it to Yunho. “I knew everyone would forget the most important part.” He pulled a small bag out of his pocket and tossed it on the living room table for easy access, to the cheers of the others, and then the decorating began in earnest. 

Yeosang quietly collected everyone’s coats and dumped them in his room and then had a roll of Christmas lights thrust into his arms by San. “For your tree,” he said simply, gently pushing Yeosang in the direction of his Christmas tree. Yeosang hadn’t had the time or energy to go out and buy decorations for his tree, so he had to admit he was happy that his friends had thought to bring over their own. He struggled a bit to get all of the lights around the tree, giving up hope of getting help as the other four giggled amongst themselves and decorated every square inch of his painfully small apartment, but eventually he got it. 

Yeosang stepped back to admire his handiwork, taking in the rest of his apartment as well. If he was being honest with himself it looked like Christmas had thrown up in the place. Yunho had swapped out his doormat with one that had an ugly sweater print, Mingi - being the giant that he is - had strung lights around the ceiling, San had managed to squeeze eight stockings together to hang them on his fireplace, and Wooyoung had somehow managed to hang Christmas decorations in his bathroom. It was horrible, but as he watched his friends huddle together and laugh he couldn’t help but think that all of it was perfect. Well, everything except his height. Yeosang still had to put the blasted star on the top of the Christmas tree - it was a necessity, Wooyoung had told him. He stretched up as high as he could, balancing precariously on the tips of his toes, yet he still couldn’t reach the top of the Christmas tree. He huffed a sigh as he sunk back on his heels. It truly was no use. 

Before he could turn around to ask for help he heard a low chuckle and suddenly Mingi was standing next to him, taking the star gently from his hands and easily placing it on the top of the tree. 

“I-I didn’t notice you were there,” Yeosang stuttered, surprised when he felt Mingi’s arm brush against his own. The younger boy was very close to him. 

“Ninja skills,” Mingi responded with a wink. He leaned over and ruffled the older boy’s hair, causing a faint blush to creep across Yeosang’s cheeks, but if he noticed he said nothing. Mingi turned away when the front door burst open and Jongho, Seonghwa, and Hongjoong made their way into the apartment. “It took you long enough!”

“We come bearing gifts,” Hongjoong said with a grin. He held up two bags filled with food and suddenly it made sense why it took them so long to get to the apartment. “We knew none of you would have thought this far ahead.”

Wooyoung looked offended but Hongjoong waved him off and set down the food on the table, followed closely by a grinning Seonghwa. “Hongjoong brought what was necessary but I brought the fun,” he said, setting down an assortment of bottles, all of which were filled with alcohol. 

“And what did you bring?” Yeosang asked Jongho, who had just closed the apartment door and slipped off his shoes. 

“Those two.”

“They were supposed to come anyway,” Wooyoung countered with a roll of his eyes, grabbing the bottles that Seonghwa had brought and taking them over to the kitchen, placing them on the counter. There had been practically no room for them on Yeosang’s small living room table with all of the food that Hongjoong had brought.

“How come there aren’t any decorations in the kitchen?” Seonghwa asked, having followed Wooyoung to grab a few cups out of the cabinet. 

“I don’t know, Mingi was supposed to do it.”

“No I wasn’t,” Mingi said indignantly, looking at Wooyoung with a scowl. “I was hanging up the Christmas lights. San should have done it! All he did was hang up a few stockings.”

And so the bickering started, the younger boys going back and forth about whose job it was to decorate the kitchen, as Seonghwa quietly grabbed decorations from the forgotten bag that Yunho and Mingi had brought. 

“You don’t have to do that, hyung,” Yeosang said with a smile, moving to help him.

“It’s best if I do,” Seonghwa replied with a chuckle. “They’ll never stop arguing in time to get it up themselves.”

Yeosang couldn’t argue with that. A smile played on his lips as he helped Seonghwa finish stringing lights along the edge of the counter and soon even the kitchen looked festive. Yeosang was finding that he really didn’t mind. He helped Seonghwa in pouring drinks for everyone and passed them around, the others having shamelessly started eating. 

“You could have waited for us,” Seonghwa grumbled as he took a seat on the floor and began digging into his food.

“We were hungry,” Mingi replied around a mouthful of food, not looking the least bit remorseful. “We saved the chicken for Yeosang, though!”

“You’re too kind,” Yeosang grumbled sarcastically, taking a seat on the floor between Mingi and Wooyoung. He would have done a better job of seeming upset if the corners of his lips weren’t curved up in the smallest of smiles. The smile wasn’t lost on Mingi who grinned back at Yeosang and fixed the older a plate of chicken. Yeosang thanked him before digging in. 

The night was perfect and it had nothing to do with the plate of chicken he had just devoured. Wooyoung, San, and Yunho had, predictably, had too much to drink and had decided that a karaoke night was in order. They had pushed his table to the side of the room to give themselves a stage and, after much debate with Jongho, had agreed that the only songs that would be sung would be Christmas songs. 

“To help get Yeosang in the Christmas spirit,” San had insisted. 

Yeosang had put up a half-hearted attempt at arguing but ultimately caved in and the singing began. Hongjoong, Seonghwa and Jongho had somehow claimed his couch for their own leaving him and Mingi on the floor, sitting with their backs against the couch. As the night wore on the singing got progressively worse, but soon they all joined in, and Yeosang was sure anyone down the block could have been able to hear.

Hongjoong was the first to fall asleep, and though they all teased him the others followed soon after. Jongho had been the only one smart enough to leave and go to Yeosang’s room, claiming the bed for himself. Hongjoong and Seonghwa were sprawled out on the couch - though it was hardly big enough for both of them - and Wooyoung, San, and Yunho had made themselves a bed on the floor. Before getting too tired they had gathered all the blankets they could find and tossed them on the floor. They were lying on most of them now, San with his head on Yunho’s chest and Wooyoung sprawled out beside them, all of their legs tangled up yet none of them looking uncomfortable. 

Yeosang and Mingi had the remaining covers, some of them underneath them for padding and a few more thrown on top of them for warmth. At some point Mingi had begun dozing off, his head lolling to the side and finding a resting place on Yeosang’s shoulder. Yeosang had gone stiff at the younger boy’s touch but didn’t want to move, both because he worried he would disturb the younger and because he simply didn’t want Mingi to move. 

Yeosang wasn’t quite sure when it had happened, but at some point in recent months he had developed quite a crush on the younger boy. In some ways Mingi was everything that Yeosang wasn’t - loud, extroverted, and energetic - but it was these things that drew Yeosang to him. He loved the way the younger was so willing and unashamed to be himself, loved the way his laughter could fill up a room and the way his eyes turned into crescents when he smiled. Mingi’s endless energy seemed to give him more energy, his confidence subtly encouraging Yeosang to speak up himself. Put it simply the younger boy made him happy, but in a different way than the others did. Mingi made him feel warm inside, like he was being lit up by the sun itself. 

He was so lost in his thoughts that he jumped when he heard Mingi speak, mumbling a soft “Yeosang,” in his sleep, and caused the younger boy to wake up. 

Mingi blinked quickly and looked up at Yeosang, still looking half-asleep, and smiled at the older boy. “You’re still up?” he asked him, voice groggy and laced with sleep. 

Mingi’s proximity and his gravely, sleepy voice both made Yeosang’s heart race and he could only hope that the younger was too tired to notice it. “J-just haven’t fallen asleep yet,” he said shakily, forcing a small chuckle. 

Mingi sat all the way up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, and cocked his head to the side. “You seem nervous, Yeosang. What’s the matter? Have a crush on me?” His smile had shifted into a grin and he let out a low chuckle. 

“A-a what?” Yeosang stammered. He could feel his cheeks heating up and he mentally cursed himself. Normally he managed not to be alone with Mingi in such close proximity, but even on the rare occasions he had found himself like this with Mingi he had never been this nervous. Maybe it was because the younger hadn’t fallen asleep on him before. Or maybe it was because the combined glow of the Christmas lights and the fire still going in the fireplace made him glow and made his eyes sparkle like they held the universe.

“A crush,” Mingi repeated, now smiling fonder at the older boy. Amusement danced in his eyes but there was also something softer in his gaze, something that seemed almost hopeful. 

Yeosang opened his mouth to respond and then promptly closed it, finding that he had absolutely no idea what to say. His heart was beating so hard he worried it might beat out of his chest and he could feel his cheeks getting even warmer. 

“It’s okay if you can’t admit it,” Mingi continued, his eyes still alight with amusement. He leaned closer to Yeosang, stretching out his hand and placing it over the older boy’s chest. This only made his heart beat faster and now he knew for sure that Mingi was aware of it. 

Yeosang put his hand on Mingi’s, meaning to gently move it from its spot over his racing heart, but Mingi caught his hand in his own and slipped his fingers between Yeosang’s, setting their now intertwined hand in his own lap. “Mingi-”

“Hm?” Mingi had a smile playing on his lips still and his eyes were shining. 

Yeosang could hear his heartbeat thundering in his ears and in that moment it seemed like everything faded away. Hongjoong’s light snores, the crackling of the fire, and Wooyoung’s periodic sighs - all of it faded to the background and all that mattered was Mingi sitting in front of him with a knowing smile on his lips. 

“Yes,” Yeosang answered, his voice so low it was barely a whisper. Mingi’s brown eyes widened in surprise and Yeosang spoke again before he couldn’t muster up the confidence to speak anymore. “Yes, I have a crush on you.”

Mingi was quiet for a moment, brown eyes wide in disbelief, and then his lips curved up into a blinding smile. “Well that’s a relief.”

Yeosang’s mind went blank. Head empty, for lack of better words. “W-what?” he stammered. 

“That’s a relief,” Mingi repeated, laughing softly. “I was worried you’d say no.”

“Worried?”

“Mhm,” Mingi hummed with a nod, his eyes gleaming with amusement again. “If you had said no then I wouldn’t have been able to do this.”

Before Yeosang could respond Mingi was leaning in and suddenly Mingi’s lips were on his. His eyes widened for a moment and then he closed them, leaning in to the kiss. Mingi’s lips were soft and gentle, the kiss almost hesitant despite the confidence in his voice. Much too soon Mingi pulled away, looking at Yeosang with wide eyes and a shy smile. 

“I hope it’s okay that I did that. I should have asked.”

Yeosang couldn’t help but laugh, the sound bubbling out of him, and Mingi laughed in response. Their laughter filled the room and it was by pure chance that the others didn’t wake up because of it. 

“It’s more than okay,” Yeosang assured him, his brown eyes bright with happiness. He looked down at their hand that was still resting in Mingi’s lap, fingers intertwined, and looked back up at the younger boy. “I didn’t know you had feelings for me.” His voice had gone quiet again, sounding almost unsure despite the kiss that they had just shared. 

Now it was Mingi’s turn to be embarrassed, his ears turning red as he avoided Yeosang’s gaze. “Yeah, I….well, I don’t know when it happened, really. But yes. I just….I realized how much I enjoyed being around you. Almost more than I enjoy being around Yunho, and he’s my best friend! You just make me feel….good. You make me feel like I matter...like you care about what I have to say. You just...:”

Yeosang raised a finger to Mingi’s lips, effectively silencing him, and looked at the younger boy with a fond smile. “I understand.”

Mingi let out a sigh of relief and grinned at Yeosang, his smile so wide that his eyes turned into the crescents that Yeosang loved so much. “So you don’t mind that I kissed you?”

“Not at all,” Yeosang said with a chuckle. “In fact, I wouldn’t mind if you did it again.”

“Greedy much?” Mingi teased, but he was more than happy to oblige. 

As Mingi leaned in and met Yeosang’s lips again Yeosang decided that maybe, just maybe, Christmas wasn’t so bad after all.


End file.
